A sugar processing facility typically processes raw material (such as sugar cane) and produces a wide variety of finished products (such as refined or finished sugar, molasses, and animal feed). The animal feed is typically produced by drying pulp and other material in one or more sugar dryers. Control of the sugar dryers is often difficult due to several factors. These factors can include the large number of process variables that affect the operation of the sugar dryers, ever-changing ambient conditions, shifts in active process constraints, and changes in the composition of the material being dried. As a result, the sugar dryers are often run at sub-optimal operation, resulting in a loss of production, excessive energy usage during drying, and/or a monetary loss.